Do you track on vacation?

katmumn

I am going to Paris in a few weeks with my mom and my younger son and I'm really torn about whether or not to try to track while I'm over there. I won the trip so it's short - only 5 days on the ground there. Normally when I've traveled in the US, I continue to track. I will have phone service but I'm thinking estimating calories may be a bit more difficult than normal as I don't speak French. I really want the full experience of French food. I'm just curious what others do when traveling, especially abroad.

Roxiegirl2008

I spend a week in New Orleans and tracked nothing. I ate and drank my way through the city. I wanted to enjoy the time there. Enjoy your vacation and get back on track when you get home.

cwolfman13

When I did track and keep a diary, I didn't do so when I was on vacation. I always thought of vacation as a good place to practice portion control and intuitive eating in general. Unless you're just going balls out or something a week is pretty irrelevant, even if you decided to cut lose a bit.

Capt_Apollo

if it's an extended vacation and i have cell service... maybe.

Diver_Adolph

If I had reached a target weight then I might not, or if I didn't mind losing a week in the decline then I wouldn't. But since neither are reality for me, I'd do the best I could at logging.

kbmnurse

No I don't but, I attempt to make healthy choices at meals. But, I drink like a fish.

kyylieeeeee

I absolutely don't track calories when on vacation, especially when I'm in another food culture-- most of the fun of vacation (at least for me) is eating and drinking as much as possible! Paris is such a perfect walking city, so hopefully that'll help you mentally offset some of the calories you'll be consuming My boyfriend and I were there a few months ago and we walked an average of about 8 miles each day, probably more.
In the end, do whichever will make you comfortable. If you'd have more fun not logging for a few days, then don't! But if not logging will stress you out, make best guesses based on what's in the app and enjoy!
If you're sticking to more well-travelled or touristy sections of the city (which seems likely, as you said you don't speak French), most restaurants and cafes have English translations on the menus or a waiter who speaks enough English to help you order. Have fun!!

Blueseraphchaos

I have 23-30 lbs left to go, have lost almost 45....going on vacation to a casino at the end of next week for 3 days and not logging a thing.

In the grand scheme of things, mathematically, in those 3 days, i might be able to eat and drink enough over maintenance to gain a few pounds, but it won't make a difference in the end.

ejuliano85

I am going to Vegas in June and I doubt I will log, but will try to do some cardio and make good choices, but we will see what happens. I am looking forward to the break!

jemhh

Nope. Went to Disney World for a week, walked a ton, ate reasonably some of the time, had dessert every day, ate my bodyweight in cornbread. Gained about 4 pounds, got back to maintenance calories the Saturday I got home, and was back to pre-vacation weight by Tuesday morning.

I_Will_End_You

lol no. I'm too drunk on vacation to track calories.

minionman

Hell no!

callsitlikeiseeit

interesting thread (im sure there have been others). We are going on vacation Easter week (usual place for us, so nothing new and exciting or anything- we know all the businesses (and are friends with most of the owners LOL and know what we eat) and I was debating on tracking or not. a LOT of our meals we cook in our rental house but we do eat out quite a few times if we can swing it. I'll probably track what i can, but not stress over the stuff I can't or dont want to try and dissect LOL. The great thing is that its a small island village and I do a LOT of walking there, so I think it i do go over maintenance (which is what ill set it to while were there).... it probably wont be devastating to my overall progress

disneygirl626

I'd say if you can't log still try to pay attention to how much you're eating and listen to your bodily cues. It's a good time to practice for if you decide that when you hit maintenance you want to stop logging.

wizzybeth

I wouldnt. ...unless I was going for like a month or six weeks lol

Chief_Rocka

No tracking, no making good choices, and no lying to myself about how I'm making up for it with activity.

Liftng4Lis

It's a vacation. NO

countscalories

For me, going on vacation does not mean "taking a vacation" from logging my food. My weight loss is worth the extra 5 minutes at the end of the day it takes to make the entries. Even if you can't access MFP on your vacation, it's a good idea to at least write down what you eat. Seeing it on paper can be a good reminder of what's really important. I love getting home from a trip, knowing that I didn't gain any weight back (and in fact may have lost even more). What better way to end a vacation?

Capt_Apollo

there are plenty of ways to stay healthy on a 5 day trip, especially in Paris. you will not find the greasy fast food that you would in the US. i'm going to assume you're paying for meals, so you'll probably be a little money conscious. also, eating at restaurants you might find yourself in a little shock as far as the servings go; you won't be getting big American portions. and you don't have to each get an appetizer at dinner and lunch, which will save calories and money.

do not skimp on the wine. french wine is blissful, and it's very affordable!

bring some work out clothes. in five days you might be able to get in at least two runs, if not a third work out. i love running on vacation and exploring the area.

DKG28

Portions sizes are smaller; prices for dining out are very high in Paris. That'll help. I would taste as much as possible -cheese, baguette, wine, you name it. It's part of the attraction of going to France

emdeesea

Nope. I went overseas for 3 weeks last year, one week of that on an island in Fiji. I didn't track anything for 3 solid weeks.

Have fun in Paris!

dandayatra

nope

arditarose

I am mindful, but don't track. I'll try to have a few days estimating a deficit/maintenance , and a few days way over maintenance. I did this on an 8 day cruise and was able to indulge without gaining an ounce.

randomtai

Nope.

970Mikaela1

I'll log right up till I'm in then red on my first day and then I'm done till I get home.

Sued0nim

Yes I do,set to maintenance and using my fitbit

steeliebob

I spent 8 days in Hawaii last month. I didn't log at all. I did try to incorporate some healthy choices here and there, but also splurged some as well at a few meals / dessert runs. I did try to stay active to offset. I snorkeled a pile, and did several pretty decent hikes, and also did a sunrise walk every morning on the beach for several miles. The sand was super soft where I was at, and that actually proved to be plenty of effort. Came home flatlined on the scale from when I left, so was happy with that.

astrose00

I'm going on vacation to the Caribbean in March. Even though I am OCD and strict I do not plan to track. I'll be sad to lose my streak but I want to just enjoy my vacation with my friends and not feel like I "have to do" anything. I definitely don't plan to overeat but will enjoy whatever I want, within reason. I'm thinking it'll be good practice for when I'm done losing weight. Enjoy but in moderation. And then right back to it when I get back home. I would have no way to estimate what I was eating so won't even try.

wishiwasarunner

Hmm. . . I would say that the only reason to log is so that you can track and try to keep your calories at a certain range. YOU ARE GOING TO PARIS. How often do you get to do that? You are only going to be there for 5 days. I would hate to think that you would waste any of that time logging food - or worrying about whether that wine or cheese or baguette that you will never get another chance to taste is going to put you over. This is Paris - not some island vacation. Deal with whatever happened when you get home, it will have been worth it.

dunnodunno

When I visited my sister in Hawaii in 2013 I tracked since I stayed there for around two to three weeks, but I definitely didn't track when I went to the luau.

segacs

wishiwasarunner wrote: »

YOU ARE GOING TO PARIS. How often do you get to do that? You are only going to be there for 5 days. I would hate to think that you would waste any of that time logging food - or worrying about whether that wine or cheese or baguette that you will never get another chance to taste is going to put you over. This is Paris - not some island vacation. Deal with whatever happened when you get home, it will have been worth it.

All of this.

(ETA: Got any spare room in your suitcase? I've lost some weight; I can squeeze into a smaller space now.)